A recent study showed that the two issues Americans see as our biggest ‎problems are drug addiction (70%) and health care affordability (67%). Pain management nurses are on the ‎front lines of both of these issues. As such, it is essential that we stay abreast of trends in practice, as well as ‎policy that influences practice. With the U.S. political system itself coming in third (52%) on the list of ‎America’s biggest problems, policy’s dependence on politics can make staying informed a dreaded, if not ‎triggering, task. In this session, ASPMN® Past President Marsha Stanton, PhD, RN, creates a safe space ‎for discussion of pain care policy and the politics surrounding it. Wade Delk, ASPMN®’s Director of ‎Governmental Affairs; and Michael Barnes, the managing partner of a Washington, D.C.-based health law ‎and policy firm, provide matter-of-fact, nonpartisan analyses of recent and proposed policy changes ‎that could affect people with pain and the professionals who treat them. Topics include the Patient ‎Protection and Affordable Care Act, Medicare expansion, drug pricing, overdose response efforts, the Food ‎and Drug Administration’s acute pain guideline, and CBD regulation. Additionally, without picking sides, the ‎speakers provide an overview of the presidential candidates’ positions on health care and drug policy ‎issues and discuss potential impacts on the treatment of people with pain.‎